Stumped: The cricket fan leaving Zimbabwe with unusual luggage
Baggage worries are forefront in the minds of most frequent flyers – does the suitcase fit in the weight limit? Are all liquids in small enough containers inside a small enough plastic bag? And perhaps most importantly, will the bags arrive intact, if they arrive at all?
Umar Shah had more reason to worry than most, since on his flight home to the UAE after a 10-day jaunt in Zimbabwe, he had stowed on board an unusual item – a stump given to him after Zimbabwe’s win against Ireland – by his close friend and player of the match Sikandar Raza.
“We had dinner the night before and I told him if he scored a fifty he needed to come down towards our end and make a pose, but I think the pressure was there and he forgot about it,” Shah said. “But thanks to him he didn’t forget about us after the game and he came down with a stump as a souvenir for us to remember. It’s already checked in, I hope they don’t lose my luggage!”
There might be a further exchange of gifts to come, with Shah having given Raza extra motivation to add a Player of the Tournament award to the three Player of the Match awards he already has in his trophy cabinet. “It’s great to see him in such tremendous form,” said Shah. “I’m very happy for him, and I think he’s a very strong candidate for the Player of the Tournament, I don’t see anyone coming close to him. I told him I hope there is a Hublot watch for him to win, and if there isn’t one I will give him one, maybe not a Hublot, but definitely some sort of watch!”
Shah’s and Raza’s friendship goes back three years, to when Zimbabwe toured the UAE to take on Afghanistan, and his close bond with the all-rounder has split the allegiances of Shah, who represented UAE at the 2014 Indoor Cricket World Cup.
“We were happy UAE retained ODI status because when they were leaving that was their first target, though everyone would have loved to see them in the World Cup,” said Shah. “Now I hope that Zimbabwe goes through. I’m very happy that I’m not here for when Zimbabwe play UAE otherwise it would have been a very difficult situation for me to support one of the two. I had thought that I would carry UAE’s flag and wear Zimbabwe’s shirt.”